Antibiotics Expert

Infants and young children who take antibiotics may have an increased risk of developing a rare type of intestinal blockage, according to a new study.

The results of the study do not prove that antibiotics cause the complication, known as intussusception. The researchers think that antibiotics may be just one of several factors that contribute to intestinal blockage in young children. Read the rest of this entry »

Antibiotics are the most commonly prescribed drugs in Irish children, an RCSI study has found. The HRB Centre for Primary Care Research at the RCSI investigated the rate of antibiotic prescriptions among children in Ireland.

Antibiotics represent one-third of all prescriptions in Irish children. The high rates of antibiotic prescribing are an increasing concern with rising antimicrobial resistance and the associated burden on the health service, the study found. Read the rest of this entry »

Antibiotic resistance is increasing to such a level that there are fears that within 20 years antibiotics will cease to function, an eventuality that could take us back to the days before penicillin. Compounds that block the bacteria’s pathogenicity instead of killing them outright may be a solution to this confounding problem.

The lack of effective antibiotics has become more and more acute as the number of bacterial strains resistant to antibiotics has increased. One of the companies that working on new ways to fight against the pathogenic bacteria is Creative Antibiotics based in Ume? in Sweden.
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Japanese scientists have found that it is possible to eradicate Helicobacter pylori infections by using antibiotics. H. pylori can cause stomach ulcers and, in extreme cases, gastric cancer. Seiji Shiota and Yoshio Yamaoka from Oita University , Japan and Baylor College of Medicine , Texas, respectively, gave H. pylori antibiotics to patients with early gastric cancer after surgical resection and were followed up for three years.

It was found that patients who received antibiotic treatment had a significantly lower risk of developing gastric cancer, confirming the importance of careful management of H. pylori.
However, certain populations (e.g. India and Thailand) have a high prevalence of H. pylori infection but a low incidence of gastric cancer.
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There definitely needs to be an overhaul of health care as we know it. For one thing, doctors have too much control over our lives. If we get an infected cut, we have to go to the doctor and get a prescription for antibiotics. If we get a sinus infection, we have to go the doctor and get a prescription for antibiotics. If we get a sore throat or ear infection, we have to go to the doctor and get a prescription.

Why don’t we eliminate this need to go to the doctor to get a prescription? By that, I mean why don’t we eliminate the middle man, the doctor? Antibiotics are not dangerous drugs. They could nip infections in the bud instead of allowing the infection to linger on and on because either you don’t have health insurance or no money for a copay if you do have insurance.
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